Football

Philippine Azkals get youthful back-ups with FEU star Bugas, Porteria

Santino Honasan on Sep 02, 2015 09:42 PM

(Josh Albelda/ABS-CBN Sports)

The Azkals just got a little more youth injected to their lineup.

After shaking their roster up ahead of their World Cup Qualifiers match against Uzbekistan which saw the additions of Roland Muller, Paul Mulders, and Jun Badelic, as well as the loss of mainstays Rob Gier and Simone Rota due to injuries, two more youngsters were added to the lineup with FEU star Paolo Bugas and Kaya FC’s OJ Porteria coming on board.

So happy to be part of the team for the world cup qualifiers against Uzbekistan #Azkals#WeBelieve

After sitting out a portion of the UAAP Season 77 football tournament due to a knee injury, Bugas, a former MVP, returned to action late in the season, just in time to help lead the Tamaraws to another UAAP football crown. Bugas currently competes in the United Football League with former champions Global FC.

The 21-year old Porteria was first called up to the senior national team back in 2012, coming off a stint with the Washington-based DC United academy. Porteria also competes in the UFC with Kaya FC, who recently defeated Ceres for the UFL Cup.

The Azkals take on Maldives this Thursday, September 3 at 8:00 pm at the Rizal Memorial Sports Stadium, before they continue their World Cup Qualifiers campaign against Uzbekistan on Tuesday, September 8 at the Philippine Sports Stadium in Bulacan. You can catch both games LIVE on ABS-CBN Sports+Action 23 and BALLS HD 167!